Electrical devices have become ubiquitous in society and have assumed many forms. Many of the most commonly encountered devices include portable or notebook computers, cell phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), printers, hand held computer games, and the like. Technological advancements have allowed these devices to provide many previously unimagined conveniences. Users have come to expect more and more from these devices, such as being smaller, faster, and more durable. Also, users expect to be able to use the devices under adverse conditions. Though these devices are used in a myriad of environments, one commonality remains, the components, especially electrical components, must be protected from contamination and corrosion. Sources of contamination include external sources such as water splashing on a cell phone and/or internal sources such as a printer's own ink.
Many of these devices use similar components such as printed circuit boards, integrated circuits, and die. The components are often used in combination by connecting two or more components and then providing electrical insulation and corrosion resistance to the individual connections. The previous methods have proved unsatisfactory both in cost and performance.
Accordingly, the present invention arose out of a desire to provide an economical, easily manufactured way of protecting components of an electrical device.